


Confessions

by LapisLazuli13



Series: Jasico - My Guilty Pleasure [3]
Category: Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, Percy Jackson and the Olympians - Rick Riordan, The Heroes of Olympus - Rick Riordan
Genre: Confessions, Cute, Dorkiness, Everyone is a dork, Except Reyna bcz she's a badass girl, F/M, Fluff, M/M, What Have I Done
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-12-16
Updated: 2018-05-03
Packaged: 2019-02-15 14:45:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 7,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13033380
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LapisLazuli13/pseuds/LapisLazuli13
Summary: Jason doesn’t know why he keeps asking a mere stranger out since the first time they met under a heavy rain. Nico can’t explain why he keeps turning the blond down automatically even though he knows that he wants to have something special with him.And after all, their mutual friends are getting tired of two oblivious lovestruck idiots that keep dancing around each other in a way that nobody can understand.…Alternative chapter title for each shot:1. “Nobody knows what the heck is going on.”2. “Nobody knows what the heck is ‘reverse lovesick’.”3. “Nobody knows what the heck could happen in this chapter.”





	1. The first confession in the pouring rain.

**Author's Note:**

> I just dig another hole that I need to finish because I'm me and I can't let myself have a relaxing day without thinking about writing something for my guilty pleasure ship.

###  **_Shot 1: The first confession in the rain._ **

…

It was raining cats and dogs on this Wednesday.

Nico was wearing a casual black polo shirt, a paint of tight jeans with midnight blue color, an aviator jacket hung over his slender frame, and they were all soaked wet and clinging to his skin under the heavy rain. His long black hair wasn’t in better condition, he felt like his loose small ponytail was heavier than normal, and his bangs stuck all over his face. His non-waterproof headphones would be damaged soon, he knew that but chose not to care about it right now. He slowly walked in the rainfall, whispering the lyrics of an Italian song that he was listening. Nico had no particular reason for that somewhat strange action, so you can say that he just felt like doing it without knowing why.

“Hey! You!”

A sudden shout made Nico slightly startle. It was an unfamiliar voice, and when he turned around, he could swear to Gods that he had no idea who the man in front of him was.

That couldn’t stop Nico to secretly admire the stranger’s appearance. He was a tall blond man with the typical look of a young American. Broad shoulders, a large chest that was practically screaming to get free under a seemed-too-small purple T-shirt, well-built muscles (No, Nico _wasn’t_ checking out his biceps _at all_ ), and nice blue jeans. The man was wearing glasses and a wide smile dancing on his mouth. And, oh God, he had a pretty attractive face. That face and a statuesque figure were an extremely unfair combination if you asked for Nico’s opinion.

“Sorry, can I help you with anything?” Nico questioned, and he can’t help but notice that the man had very captivating eyes. Was it legal to possess eyes with _that electric blue_ color?

“Uhm, I just want to ask…” The young man trailed off, he looked sheepishly at his shoes, avoiding the smaller boy’s gaze.

Nico observed the stranger with a puzzled expression. “Yeah?”

What did this man want from him? Normally nobody calls him out in the street like this. Nico has perfected the art of blending into shadows and the environment around him, so it’s hard to find him in the middle of a crowd of people. But he admitted that walking alone under the rain could make you stand out like a crazy fool, especially when it was nobody around you.

“I know this might sound a little bit weird but… do you want to be my boyfriend?” The blond blurted out when he finally lifted his head and looked straight into the black-haired boy’s eyes.

Nico just blinked at him. Twice. His face was totally blank with emotions. _What the heck is going on?_

“No, I don’t think so,” Nico shook his head after ten seconds and answered. It was such a pity that the handsome man had some problems with his mind. “Sorry, I gotta go.”

“… Okay…?” The man scratched his head with a confusing expression and nodded at him. He didn’t look hurt at all, and the whole scene was just… so weird. Nico sighed lightly, started to walk away from the awkward situation. This will definitely be on top three of his _strangest-things-happened-in-my-life_ list.

…

Reyna scowled at Nico with a totally unsatisfied expression on her face when he stepped into her coffee shop. “Nico, I love you like my little brother. But that doesn’t mean you can let water from your clothes constantly drop on my clean floor.”

The black-haired boy gulped down and turned his head back to look at the watery traces he left on the white marble floor. “It’s raining outside,” He tried to smile at the braided girl behind the countertop. Hey, today she was wearing her favourite white and yellow button-up shirt, the ‘R’ letter pendant attached to a silver chain wrapping around her neck was her most treasured jewelry. _‘That means she was in a good mood, right?’_ Nico silently prayed for his life.

Reyna was clearly not cheering up at all, judging by how her frown became more serious as her eyebrows almost knitted together. Her piercing black eyes were cold as ice when she locked her gaze at Nico’s dark chocolate brown irises. He stared back, didn’t want to look defeated in front of her.

“You can catch a cold with all those drenched clothes,” After ten seconds of a silent but intense eye-glaring battle, Reyna sighed. “You’re so irresponsible with your health, Nico. If Hazel knows…”

“Geez, I won’t get a cold just because of some raindrops. Calm down, Reyna.” Nico shook his head, raising up both his hands in a defense posture. “And please don’t tell Hazel. I don’t want her to mother-hen me for an hour.”

“So stop doing ridiculous things like walking under heavy rain,” Reyna raised one eyebrow and nodded toward the menu. “What do you want?”

“A latte macchiato is good enough. Medium size.” The black-haired boy smiled gratefully at his surrogate sister. Reyna sniffed and gestured to a table next to a window.

“$5.30. Wait for 2 minutes.”

“Thank you, Reyna.” Nico nodded, walking to his table. Water was still dripping from his clothes. He felt cold, and that meant something because his own body temperature was slightly lower than normal people. He shivered while sitting down. Maybe taking a walk in the pouring rain for minutes wasn’t a great idea after all.

_Today is definitely a strange day for me._

…

“So what’s up?” Reyna plopped down on a chair in front of Nico’s after putting his cup on the table and throwing a big towel at him. “Dry yourself.”

Nico stopped looking at the streaks of water were flowing down the transparent glass and turned his head in her direction. “What do you mean?” He asked innocently.

“Stop behaving like you know nothing,” She was clearly unimpressed with his merely non-existent acting skills. “Something’s up with your mind. It’s written all over your face, Nico.”

“I don’t…” He protested.

“I’ve known you for years, Nico. You can’t lie to me.” She cut him off with a glare. Nico sighed, didn’t he know that. Reyna was like his adopted sister, and she treated him very well, but sometimes she could be really scary.

“Someone just asked me to be his boyfriend.” He spilled out, wrapping the towel around his shoulders to absorb the water in his clothes.

“Do I know him? Can I meet him?” Reyna raised an eyebrow, and Nico slightly winced when he realized the _so-I-can-give-him-a-shovel-talk_ look on her face. He took a sip from his latte macchiato before giving her an answer.

“Sorry for killing your joy of being an overprotective sister, but you can’t,” The corner of his mouth raised up into a small smirk. “And for the first question, you don’t know him. Even I don’t know him either. He suddenly appeared from nowhere and approached me while I was walking.”

That totally caught her attention. “Wait, did you just say that some stranger on the street asked you out? What’s your response?”

“Yup,” Nico popped the letter ‘p’ in his mouth, a lazy grin dancing on his lips. “And I said no, of course. I didn’t have the faintest idea what the heck was going on. I think he’s crazy, and that’s such a waste because he’s really good-looking.”

“Describe him then,” Reyna crossed her arms over her chest, an amused smile appeared on her face.

“He’s taller than me, I don’t know, about 6 feet with some more inches?” Nico tilted his head, trying to recall the stranger’s appearance. “Blond with blue eyes, and an athletic body. Nice muscles. He wears glasses and he has a very handsome face. Typical American young man.”

“Sounds interesting,” Reyna chuckled, and Nico really didn’t like the mischievous tone of her voice. “Why did you say no though?”

“Reyna, I don’t know him!” Nico stared at her in disbelief. “A stranger could be anyone, and he might be dangerous or even a criminal! How could I agree to go out with somebody that I don’t have any idea who are they? I’m not insane!”

“Hey, you don’t need to react that strongly. I’m just sayin’.” Reyna laughed at his quite horrified expression. “Such a weird occurrence, isn’t it?”

“Don’t I know that,” Nico sniffed and took another sip. Reyna’s drink was as tasty as usual.

“Alright. But if it’s nothing but just a strange encounter, why do you look quite sad right now?” The female barista smirked at the younger boy, teasing him.

“I’m not!” Nico glared at her. He _definitely_ wasn’t blushing right now.

“You are,” Her grin just widened. Damn Reyna and her sharp observation. “He was quite a catch, wasn’t he?”

“I won’t date a lunatic,” Nico hissed and deliberately threw the wet towel at her. “I’m done drying myself, thank you. By the way, this macchiato is great. Can I have some alone time to enjoy it?”

“Little brat,” Reyna stood up with the towel and reached her hand to ruffle his wet hair. “You’re lucky that you’re cute so I can’t stay mad at you for too long. But don’t do that again…” She gestured at his still damp clothes and the towel in her arm. “… Or I will throw you out right at the moment you set your footstep into my coffee shop. And Hazel will know.”

“Sorry, it won’t have a next time, I promise.” Nico nodded at her and gave her a heartful smile. Reyna just chuckled, a fond look appeared in her eyes before she walked away.

…

Five minutes later, the doorbell of Reyna’s coffee shop rang and another customer walked in. Reyna frowned, what’s wrong with young men today? Did walking in the pouring rain and being drenched just become the new odd trend?

“Sorry about the raindrops, it’s raining heavily outside.” The man smiled sheepishly at her and gestured toward the footprints he just left on the floor.

“I can see that,” She nodded and gave him a courteous smile. “Which drink do you choose?”

“Ah… one matcha macchiato, please.” The man scratched the back of his head. Reyna nodded, typing down his order.

“Small, medium or large?” She didn’t lift her head up while asking for his decision of cup size.

“Medium, please.”

“Your drink is $5.70. Anything else?” She smiled at the customer. “Uhm, I can give you a clean towel to dry yourself a little bit if you want. It’s not good for your health to sit for hours with those wet clothes.”

“Oh, thank you very much!” The blond flashed a wide grin at Reyna while handling her the money. “You’re a good person.”

“You’re welcome.” At that moment Reyna started to notice the man’s appearance: blond with blue eyes, really tall and brawny, wearing glasses and a simple purple T-shirt. And he had very attractive facial structures – even she wasn’t really into men now, she still appreciated those aesthetic features.

Reyna blinked, her mouth slightly formed a small ‘o’ shape when realization dawned on her. _Hey, it has too many similarities to be just a coincidence._

“Here’s your change and a towel,” She gave the blond a green paper and some coins with a white towel. “You can sit over there. Your drink will be ready in one minute.”

“Thank you.” The man nodded at her, started to walk to his table while using the towel to dry himself.

Reyna didn’t take her eyes off the new customer. She chose that table for him on purpose. It had a clear view around the shop, including the spot next to the window that Nico was sitting, but on the contrary, the black-haired boy cannot see whoever’s occupying the blond’s current seat.

 _‘If that’s the man Nico told me, so I can see an interesting story’s coming up.’_ She grinned to herself. Today’s clearly not a normal day.

…

It was still raining outside, but it’s smaller than an hour ago. The coffee shop wasn’t really crowded – it was 3 P.M on a Wednesday afternoon. Reyna decided to have a little chat with the latest customer after observing him for 5 minutes, just because she owned the shop and she can do whatever she wanted.

“Would you mind me sitting here?” She politely asked. The man tore his gaze away from a particular young boy with feathery long black hair sitting beside the window and cleared his throat.

“Sure, please sit down,” He gave her a smile and held the cup in his left hand. His other hand was holding the damp towel. “Thank you for this.”

“It’s nothing,” She took the towel back and put it on the chair next to hers. Then she crossed her legs in the posture of a queen, a soft smile curved up her lips. “May I ask you why did you walk under the heavy rain and get yourself drenched like this? And I’m the owner of this shop, by the way. Just call me Reyna.”

The blond nodded at her, extending his free hand. “My name is Jason Grace. Nice to meet you, Reyna.”

They shared a quick handshake before the man released her hand and looked away. “And I was just thinking something. I had no specific reason to walk in the rain, it didn’t bother me at all. I just felt like doing it. It sounds kind of stupid, isn’t it?” He laughed quietly, the small scar on his upper lip caught her attention. The young man had a bright and gorgeous smile.

A cheeky glint appeared in Reyna’s eyes when she watched him continuously catching quick glances at Nico’s direction. “Not really,” She decided after some seconds. The other just slightly nodded, he didn’t even look at her.

Between the two of them and Nico was a big one-sided glass that painted with elegant curves and patterns in bright colors to decorate. It was the main reason that they could look at the younger boy easily but he had no idea what they’re doing at this moment. Reyna just smirked. “Do you like your drink?”

“It’s very delicious. I love it,” The man laughed again. “Such a shame that I didn’t know this shop until today.”

“My brother likes macchiato too,” A fond smile was dancing on Reyna’s lips. “He always says that my latte macchiato is the best in the world.”

“I’m having a matcha one, but I’m sure that your latte is really good too.” Jason nodded at her, his eyes glinted with pure sincerity. “And you have a brother? Older or younger?”

“Younger. He’s sitting right there. And if you think walking under the pouring rain is a stupid action, don’t be sad because you’re not the only one who did it.” She laughed, pointing at the table next to the window. An amused chuckle escaped her lips when she saw the other’s eyes widened.

“He’s your brother?” Jason quietly asked while looking directly into her eyes. It was something in his gaze that made Reyna feel the whole situation’s so interesting.

“Yup,” She rolled her tongue around the letter ‘p’. “My adorable but sometimes intolerable adopted brother, Nico.”

“Nico,” Jason repeated. “It’s a beautiful name. But did you just say … adopted?” It was clear that the blond was confused.

“We aren’t related by blood,” Reyna explained. “I met him seven years ago and we slowly became friends, then our relationship developed into a kind of brother–sister bond. Now we treat each other like real brother and sister. It’s nice having him around, even though sometimes he really drives me up a wall.”

“That’s a siblings thing,” The blond laughed genuinely. “I have an older sister too. She and I bicker about both serious and nonsense things a lot, but we truly love each other.”

“I guess so,” Reyna smiled in satisfaction. Then the corner of her mouth twitched into a mischievous grin. “Do you think my brother is good-looking, Grace?”

“Err…” Jason looked like he has been electrocuted. “He’s… very beautiful, I think so.”

“Hmm. Which part do you like the most about him?” The black-haired girl wanted to continue her little game. She was really curious about this blond man and she needed to know did he have more than just his appearance.

“Huh?” Now the other was confused. He didn’t catch subtle glances at Nico anymore, now he was staring at him. After almost one minute, he slowly opened his mouth again. “I don’t really know him. I guess your question is not easy to answer for me. He has delicate features and a coltish manner, but I think the look isn’t the most important trait of a person.”

Reyna seemed satisfied with Jason’s response. “I agree with you. Personality is more considerable in my opinion. But I think we won’t argue with the fact that Nico is really attractive.”

“You’re right,” The blond laughed and looked more relaxed than a few minutes ago. “He’s one of the most beautiful boys I have ever met.”

 _‘Now I’m getting more and more curious about your intentions toward my brother, Grace.’_ Reyna thought to herself, but she decided it wasn’t necessary to say it out loud at this moment. At least the blond didn’t seem to be the dangerous or bad boy type, but she definitely would keep an eye on him if he tries to talk to Nico again.

“He’s a good boy too. Nico has a warm heart, even though he usually hides his natural kindness under a cold and emotionless façade.” Reyna spoke fondly about her surrogate brother. “It’s hard to make him let his inner walls down, but after all, it’s worth every moment I shared with him.”

Jason nodded at her then looked at the younger boy again, he hummed quietly and didn’t give Reyna any response, but she thought it’s enough for a conversation. “Thank you for spending time talking with me. Enjoy your drink, Grace.” She stood up and took the towel with her.

“It’s nice to talk to you, Reyna. Have a good day.” The blond smiled at the coffee shop’s owner before taking another sip from his half-empty cup. His gaze was lingering at the black-haired boy again.

Reyna walked back to her countertop, looked at her phone screen. It’s 3:37 PM, and it was still raining lightly. The doorbell tinkled when someone stepped in. Reyna raised her eyebrow for one second, quickly glanced at the new customer. Good, the woman was taking off a semi-transparent blue raincoat and she didn’t look drenched at all. Seemed like walking under pouring rain was just something only her dorky brother and the strange blond would do.

…

Half of an hour later, the rain stopped. Mid-afternoon sunlight weakly passed through the glistening glass at the window frame. Nico watched the stubby squares elongating to faded rectangles, decided it’s time for him to go home.

“Reyna, I’m going home.” He stood up, walked to her countertop and gave her a genuine smile.

She slightly frowned, but he knew she can’t keep this expression on him for too long. After three seconds, the black-haired girl shook her head and patted his cheek, a smile dancing on her lips. “Don’t do this again, remember? You need to take care of your health more seriously, Nico.”

“I will,” He leaned into her affectionate touch and secretly enjoyed that, but he would deny it later. “Thanks for the latte and the towel, sister.”

“You’re welcome.” At this moment, Reyna made an eye-contact with the blond who was still sitting in his chair, seemed couldn’t take his eyes off the scene in front of him. She smirked.

“Why are you grinnin-…” Nico turned his head around then trailed off at mid-sentence when Jason didn’t have enough time to tear his gaze away. Dark brown orbs met electric blue ones, and their eyes widened when Reyna was watching in amusement.

Nico just stood there in frozen posture while Jason nearly choked on his drink. _‘Oh my God, he saw me! What should I do now?!’_

“His name is Jason Grace. And he is _really_ a catch.” Reyna chuckled, poking the younger male’s cheek. He glared at her but looked more embarrassed than angry.

“I don’t need to know his name. I won’t date a crazy man.” Nico hissed, cursing under his breaths when he felt his cheeks flushed. “I’m going home. Goodbye, Reyna.”

After that, he stormed out of the shop like he was being chased after by monsters.

Technically, he _was_ being chased after. But by a tall blond named Jason Grace _(not thank you, Reyna)_ , and he was definitely not a monster – unless monster decided to take the form of a handsome young man, then Nico didn’t really know how to react in this case.

Even though that imaginary situation was just weirder than his current one only a little bit.

“What do you want?” He snapped, then winced slightly at his harsh tone. The blond looked quite uncomfortable, his eyes didn’t meet Nico’s.

“I… My name is Jason. Jason Grace.” He tried to smile, but it didn’t make the tension between them disappear.

“That’s not the answer I need to hear,” Nico crossed his arms over his chest in a defensive posture. “Let me repeat. What do you want?”

“I know your name is Nico,” Jason knew he chose the wrong thing to say right after the moment those words escaped his mouth. He quickly added when Nico raised an eyebrow skeptically. “Reyna told me.”

“… That’s still not the right answer.” Nico scrutinized the man in front of him, tried not to focus on his handsome face or herculean physique. The blond was very suspicious, and Nico didn’t want to have any connection with a psychopath, no matter how attractive the other was.

“I don’t really understand why I’m doing this but…” The man trailed off, then sighed. _“Doyouwanttogooutwithmeonadate?”_

“Sorry, what?” Nico almost choked on his own words. He didn’t hear that wrong, did he?

“Do you want to go out with me on a date?” The blond repeated, slower than the first time. His face was practically burning in red now.

The silence followed after was very hard to describe. Nico thought he could actually hold a knife and cut through the thick awkward atmosphere at this moment.

“Sorry, my answer is no. We don’t know each other, and I won’t date a stranger.” Nico sighed, tried to ignore the slight regretful feeling was bubbling up inside his stomach. What’s wrong with him? His choice was a logical decision, he should be proud of his self-control.

“Uhm… I see…” Jason nodded, his smile dropped and his shoulders slouched with disappointment. He looked like a lost, sad and confused puppy, and Nico mentally slapped himself for that thought.

“So… Goodbye, Jason.” He said after another awkward silence, then slowly walked away. The smaller male could feel the blond’s gaze was lingering on his back, but at least the man didn’t actually follow him. He sighed heavily, knew that the sight of this man would stay in his memory for a long time since today.

***

“Wow, Jason, I know you’re crazy, but I don’t think it’s at that high level.” Leo Valdez exclaimed when Jason finished his story about the strange boy he met today.

Jason was sitting inside his shared apartment with Leo, his best friend and his roommate for 2 years since their freshman year at college. Normally they get along very well, but sometimes _(example: right at this moment)_ the blond just wanted to strangle the Hispanic boy.

“Last time I checked, I’m not the one who set our couch on fire last week, Leo.” He retorted because he wasn’t ready to commit homicide to his best friend now.

The third person in the room laughed hysterically at this. She was a gorgeous girl with brown hair braided with colorful feathers, smooth skin, and a very beautiful face. Her eyes were bright green now, but both Jason and Leo swore that they can change colors under different sources of light.

“I really don’t understand why did I agree to date you last year.” The Cherokee girl shrugged, putting a full spoon of vanilla ice cream into her mouth.

“You’re not helpful at all, Pipes,” Jason groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose. “And geez, thank you, Leo, for your creative constructive comment about my sanity.”

“My pleasure bro.” Leo grinned, his expression was similar to a cheeky elf.

“What did he look like, Jason?” Piper stopped laughing and asked, her eyes glinted with amusement.

“Shorter than me, uhm, about 5 feet 6’, I think?” Jason shrugged. “Black hair, dark eyes, delicate features, lithe and light-built body. Ah, and he has a velvety voice. It sounds really nice. Even his name is beautiful, Nico. I don’t know his last name, though.”

“Those are hardly called enough personal information,” Piper commented. “And you asked him to be your boyfriend not just once, but twice. What did you think, Jason?”

“Honestly, I don’t know it either,” Jason sheepishly smiled. The look on Leo’s face now was so comical, but somehow he didn’t feel it’s as funny as usual. “I just… originally I wanted to ask where did he buy that waterproof headphone, but when he turned around and looked at me, I lost my thought and made a fool of myself by saying the only thing was on my mind at that moment.”

Leo and Piper exchanged a meaningful look, then observing Jason. The blond started to regret telling them the story. Their expressions were hard to decipher, but at least he understood the part _you-are-an-idiot_ was written clearly on their playful grins.

“You are an idiot.” Great, Leo had the heart to say it right on his face. That’s what best friends suppose to do, in Leo’s guidebook of dealing with his friends.

“What are you gonna do, Jason?” Piper asked him, her voice had a hint of genuine concern. At least she didn’t make fun of him, and Jason was really thankful for that.

“I don’t know. It doesn’t look like I could have a chance to meet him again,” Jason sadly smiled. “Better forget it, I think.”

“You said it with a dreamy melancholic expression, do you realize that?” Piper scrutinized him. Jason just made a face, because he knew she was right. He wasn’t going to forget that angelic boy anytime soon.

“Oh, boy,” After a solid moment of silence, Leo shook his head and patted his left shoulder. “Jason, you do realize you’re in trouble now, don’t you?”

“I’m not that stupid.” He hissed. Yes, he definitely regretted telling them.

Piper just smiled at Jason and mouthed _“It’s going to be fine”_ to him. He really wanted to believe in her words.

***

“And I turned him down. Again,” Nico shrugged and made a gesture that meant _can-you-believe-that_ to his sister. “Then I walked home, and until now I still don’t understand what the heck was going on with this blond man.”

“Wow,” That was all of Hazel’s reply to the story. Nico snorted at her, and she closed her mouth, elbowing him quite hard. “What do you expect me to react?”

“More than just ‘wow’, I think.” He shook his head. “Or… I don’t know. I don’t even want to think about that.”

“So, let me summarize that,” Hazel shot him a glare, her face was serious. “Today, because of some unknown reasons, my idiotic brother decided to walk in the heavy rain without any umbrella our raincoat, and he got himself drenched…”

“That was _not_ the story I told you, Haze.” Nico cringed, he _knew_ his sister cannot let that tiny part slip away unnoticed. “Please, Reyna already gave me an earful, and I made a promise that I won’t do it again to her. And you know that I’ll always keep promises with my sisters, Hazel.”

“Well, so I guess my lecture can wait for another time,” Hazel clapped her hands together, now a cheeky grin widened on her face. “The more important thing is today a very handsome stranger asked my dear brother out twice, and he declined both the chances. And now he is moping about it.”

“I’m not,” Nico rolled his eyes. “Which eye of yours sees that I’m moping?”

“Both,” Hazel immediately replied. “C’mon, Nico, you can’t lie to your own sister. I can almost feel the sadness radiated out of you right now.”

“That doesn’t mean I’m moping.” Nico was stubborn, and both he and Hazel knew that. She sighed, her fingers played with a curl of her bouncy hair when she looked at him.

“Alright, you’re not moping. But you’re sad, and kind of regretting your decision.”

“I don’t want to have a conversation with you about Jason right now.” Nico scowled at Hazel. “Anyway, that’s just a strange encounter. I don’t think I’ll meet him again. I have nothing to care about it.”

“If you say so,” Hazel pursed her lips. “So I have one last question.”

“Yeah?” He blinked at her, suddenly shivered at her fierce glare.

“Where. Is. My. Headphone?” She emphasized each word, and Nico knew he was in deep trouble when he remembered that the headphone was a gift from Frank for his sister two months ago for their 6-month-of-dating anniversary.

_Oh Holy Hades._

…


	2. The following confessions.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jason continues to confess his unexplainable feeling to Nico. Nico continues to think that he can’t explain why does he turn Jason down every single time with his damn self-functioned mouth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I probably should rename the previous chapter to “Nobody knows what the heck is going on.” and this chapter would be “Nobody knows what the heck is ‘reverse lovesick’.”
> 
> Maybe the last one could be named “Nobody knows what the heck could happen in this chapter.”

###  _**Shot 2: The following confessions.** _

 

…

 **_Time:_ ** _11:37 A.M. **Location:** The Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC._

It was a bright Saturday. The sun was shining, the wind was light and nice, the weather was beautifully suitable for an outside picnic. But there was Percy, being trapped inside a big house that they collected and stored pieces of pictures and statues and something else that’s equally unexplainable.

So, how about Percy’s feeling? Percy was bored to death. Not literally, but still so close. Today was a good day for outdoor activities, so why did he need to be here? Sure, to help his childhood friend get over a stupid stage of _“reverse lovesick”_.

Please don’t ask him what the heck was _“reverse lovesick”_. He didn’t have the vaguest idea either. That’s Reyna’s words, and Annabeth laughed hysterically when she heard it. And both Reyna and Annabeth were smarter than him, so no, he didn’t really need to understand at all.

But seriously, no matter the kid’s major was modern art, classical literature or ancient biology _(did that even exist anyway?)_ or whatever, that’s absolutely not the reason for him to stay in there for, let’s say, three hours without getting bored even just a little bit.

_Seriously, how?_

“Oh, hey Percy!” A familiar voice made Percy lift his head up in confusion. “What are you doing here?”

“Dakota?” Percy squinted his eyes. In his memory, the usually drunken with Cool-Aid boy wasn’t a fan of modern art, just like him. “Oh, hi. I’m stuck here with a friend. Bored to death, apparently.”

“Wow, that sucks, man.” Dakota laughed, waving the bottle of Kool-Aid in his hand. “I’m here with a friend, too. Said friend is lovesick. Said friend is also someone you know. Remember Jason from the Leaders Exchanging Campaign?”

“Jason Grace?” Percy thought for a while. “Sure, I remember him. What happened?”

Jason, Percy, and Dakota knew each other when they joined a Campaign between their high schools three years ago. Percy and Jason exchanged their positions with each other for a month and that’s how they became friends.

“I don’t really know,” Dakota shrugged nonchalantly. “But believe me, that’s kind of a weird story, involving a cup of tasty macchiato, a heavy rain and something utterly stupid. At least that’s what he told me.”

“Oh, I won’s ask,” Percy made a face, ignored how that information sounded eerily familiar. “You’re still okay, right? I mean school and stuff.”

“It’s good,” Dakota grinned widely. “More than okay, really. But now I’m here with a lovesick Jason and I’m not okay right at this moment.”

“Me too. I like Nico, but sometimes that kid is a pain in the ass,” Percy grimaced slightly at the thought how would Nico react if he could hear his comment, but he decided to ignore his own imagination. “Reyna said some stuff sounded suspiciously like _reverse lovesick_ , but don’t ask me what does that mean please.”

“I won’t,” Dakota raised an eyebrow but still nodded. “Hey, since we’re here, what do you think about going out and having a lunch together? We can leave Jason and Nico in there, I doubt they would mind having their own lovesick company.”

“Sound good,” Percy nodded and grinned. “Let me tell Nico then. You go find Jason and we meet at the entrance 10 minutes later, okay?”

“Okay.” Dakota fist-bumped with him and they went to find their friends.

…

Nico and Jason both refused to leave “that early”. So Dakota and Percy decided to ignore them here and went for their food. Food was always the first priority.

And ladies and gentlemen, that’s how an hour later, Jason found Nico was staring at him in utter confusion and no, he definitely didn’t think those doe eyes of the black-haired boy were super cute at all.

“What are you doing here?” Nico choked out the question and his eyes never left Jason’s and the other could only silently pray that _Please don’t look at me like this, do you know your eyes are so irresistible, Nico?_

The blond was stunned to see him here so he took three minutes of solid, awkward silence before the black-haired boy’s question could finally sink into his clouded head and he weakly smiled. “Nothing much. You?”

“Learning,” Nico replied. Technically it wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the truth either. But honestly, who cared that much? “But now I’m starving, and _Percy-fucking-Jackson_ is nowhere to be seen now.”

“Wait. You know Percy?” Jason was surprised because they actually had a mutual friend.

“My sister and he are friends since they’re 12 or 13,” Nico frowned. “So yeah, I know him more than I wish for my entire life.”

“The first time we met was at a Leaders Exchanging Campaign,” Jason shrugged when he remembered those memories. They’re not really all pleasant and memorable. “He and I switched our places for a month and he destroyed half of the rules I made for my team in just one week. That bastard.”

“Why am I not surprised hearing this?” Nico shook his head and grinned. “Poor you.”

“Afterward his friends and teammates voted that I was the more responsible one and they liked me better so I’m not really disappointed about the whole situation.”

“He deserves that,” Nico laughed and Jason swore that no, the other boy didn’t look cute as hell when he laughed genuinely like this at all.

Damn his traitorous little heart that was beating so fast and too loud inside his chest now.

“I’m starving too,” he said, hoping that the other didn’t see his cheeks were reddening now. “And Dakota left me an hour ago. Wanna go grab something to eat together? I know a very good restaurant close by.”

“Sure, why not?” Nico nodded at him and they walked out of the museum together.

***

“You didn’t tell me that the “very good restaurant” is that big,” Nico silently observed the huge building in front of him. “Not that I’m complaining anything, but I wonder if the price will be too high for us.”

“Don’t worry, my sister’s friend is the owner of this place and she adores me so I guess we could easily get a discount,” Jason shrugged nonchalantly and reached to grab Nico’s hand. “Let’s get inside!”

Nico tried to not react differently when warmth radiated from Jason’s hand and permeated his skin. It was a nice feeling and when Jason let his hand go, Nico suddenly wanted to reach out and take his hand again. He restrained himself from that thought and casually took a seat.

Jason handed him the menu, “Choose whatever you want. Price isn’t the problem.”

“Glad to hear that,” the dark-haired boy smiled and scanned the menu. Wow, this restaurant definitely had something good, because he could find some Italian dishes in there. “I think I’ll take this,” he pointed out a dish and gave the menu back to Jason.

A waitress came to their table with a professional, welcoming smile on her face. “Good afternoon, gentlemen. May I help you?”

“Oh, hi Phoebe. We’re just choosing our food,” Jason smiled back at her. “Here, we’ll take this and this.” He pointed at the name of the dishes and the waitress nodded.

“They’ll be ready in less than ten minutes,” Phoebe told them before left to the kitchen.

“Oh, I almost forget, do you want some drink?” Jason asked Nico before they could get into an awkward silence. “I usually take red wine or soda drink. But coffee here is good, too. We can tell Phoebe when she comes back to our table.”

“Sure,” Nico agreed. “I think I’ll get a latte. It’s quite a long time since the last time I drank it.”

“Good choice,” the blond grinned. “I’ll take a cappuccino. I prefer macchiato, but I don’t think many people can make it as tasty as your sister.”

“She’ll be glad to hear that,” Nico offered Jason a small smile. “I really like her drinks.”

“And I really like you,” ten years later, Jason still couldn’t understand what made him suddenly blurt out his feeling at this moment. “I know this is the third time I ask but do you want to be my boyfriend?”

“Oh wow, smooth,” Nico blinked, wasn’t sure should he laugh or get panic about that unexpected confession. “But sorry, I can’t.”

“Your food is ready. Have a good meal, gentlemen.” Phoebe chose this moment to reappeared and brought them their dishes with a wide smile on her face. They both felt that was an obligation to return her smile and when she’s gone, the only thing in their minds was how good the food smelled.

Jason and Nico both forgot they should have at least five minutes of awkward silence after an unsuccessful confession just like this.

…

“Oh, I’m so full,” Nico put down his spoon and let out a relieved sigh. “The food’s really delicious. I’ll definitely come back to this restaurant.”

“Are you done?” Jason took a sip of water and placed the empty glass down on the table. “And I agree, the food here is as tasty as always.”

Nico just nodded at him, a satisfied expression clouded his face and Jason can’t help but thinking _‘OMG, he’s way too cute!!’_

Ten seconds later, when Nico’s face was so close to Jason’s, the blond blinked and felt so speechless when the black-haired boy asked. “What’s wrong? Your face is so red, I thought you just have a fever.”

Their foreheads were touching and Jason can understand why did his face feel this hot. He can feel the light breaths of Nico lightly touched his skin and that only made it grow warmer. With this almost no distance, he can slowly and accidentally raise his chin a little bit and they can share a kiss…

“Your temperature is normal,” Nico leaned back in his chair and smiled. “I guess I just overreacted. Just a habit when you’re learning Pre-Med. Speaking about it, I wonder how long will it take for Percy to figure out what exactly I study. He still thinks my major is modern art or classical literature or something similar.”

“He does?” Jason faked a smile, he still felt bitter about his failure when he chickened out and didn’t dare to move even just a little bit to make the imaginary kiss become real. “And I’m alright, thanks for caring.”

“I think we should split the bill.” Nico requested when he saw Phoebe was coming to their table with something on her hands.

“Actually, I have another idea.” Jason winked at him and took his hand. “Follow me!”

…

“What do you want, Jason?” Zoë lightly tapped her left foot on the floor and asked the blond. It’s quite a long time since the last time she saw him, did he get taller? And who’s this black-haired boy? He’s a cutie, but she didn’t know him. Zoë wondered could she secretly take a picture of them and send to Thalia or not.

“I want this meal free.” Jason smiled at her brightly and Zoë suddenly wanted to cover her eyes. It’s not a big deal for her to accept his request, but…

“Why?”

“I’m here with a friend.” Jason grabbed Nico’s right arm and lightly pushed him forward. He looked quite confused and Zoë smirked.

“Just _a friend_? Why should I agree with your request when he’s just a normal friend? I don’t even know his name.”

“… Nico, _my boyfriend_.” Jason decided after two seconds.

“Wait… uhmm…!” Nico stared at the blond, but before he could open his mouth and correct the misunderstanding here, Jason’s hand touched his cheek and guided him to a kiss.

Nico could hear a small _‘Close your eyes and act with me!’_ before his lips were covered with Jason’s. The kiss was chaste and warm, but it made him feel so strange like his entire body was on fire. Every inch of his skin that Jason touched was burning and it’s so comforting at the same time. Nico didn’t want to understand what did all of these mean anymore.

“Ahem.” Zoë coughed and both the boys awkwardly separated from each other. Jason quickly got a serious face and smiled at Zoë.

“So, Nico’s my boyfriend. And today it’s the first time we have a date at your restaurant. Could you accept my request before?”

“Hmm…” Zoë scrutinized both of them with an intense glare and Nico tugged at Jason’s sleeve. Jason thought he might have to kiss Nico again to persuade her. Oh wait, it’s not ‘have to’. Kissing Nico was a nice experience the blond was more than pleased to repeat it.

“She seemed not very convinced. Do I need to kiss you again to make her believe us?” Sadly, Nico wasn’t as comfortable as Jason with the unexpected kiss. His voice marked with a small dose of awkwardness.

“Pfff…” Right at this moment, Phoebe’s laugh made all the seriousness go away after one second. All three others glanced at her, especially Zoë when she gave her friend a dagger-like glare. Phoebe covered her mouth with one hand, seemed can’t stop laughing. “I’m sorry, but this whole situation it’s so hilarious! It looks like a young son brings his girlfriend to his mother-hen mom the first time and she’s trying to act so intimidating like an old-fashioned mother should be! Ahahaha!!”

When both Jason and Nico didn’t change their expressions, Zoë frowned at Phoebe. “Did you just call me… _mother-hen mom_ and _old-fashioned mother_?”

“Oh!” Now Phoebe covered her mouth with both of her hands, but she’s still struggling to control her laugh. “Sorry, I didn’t really mean it!”

“How dare you?!” Zoë groaned and looked more than ready to teach her friend a lesson.

“You can deal with her later,” Jason interrupted the fight’s going to happen between. “And you see, Phoebe agreed that we look like a couple.”

“Jason’s right. Can you accept his request, Zoë? I’ll be grateful for your generosity.” Nico decided to help Jason with this conversation. He wasn’t really bothered when he’s the girlfriend in Phoebe’s imagination at all.

“Alright, just this time,” Zoë sighed at them. “And you know I’ll tell Thalia all about this, Jason.”

“Oh, go ahead.” Jason shrugged. “Thank you, Zoë!”

“Thank you, Zoë.” Nico smiled at her before being dragged out. “Nice to meet you.”

Phoebe gulped when there’s just only the two of them in the room now. “Hey, you aren’t really mad about what I said, right? You know that was just a joke, Zoë.”

“My age isn’t a joke for you.” Zoë cracked her knuckles and frowned. “Are we clear?”

Phoebe just knew today wasn’t her day with Zoë’s expression. Not anymore.

***

“Because of a free meal, now they think I’m your boyfriend.” Nico sighed when they walked down the street.

Jason smiled at his pissed off expression and just shrugged. “They don’t know you, that’s the first time you came to their restaurant. And you don’t plan to come back anytime soon, right? Don’t worry about it.”

“You forcefully kissed me.” Nico accused and Jason pouted.

“I just didn’t ask you first, I didn’t force you. And both of us know you liked that kiss.”

“…” Nico glared at the blond but didn’t deny. Jason smirked.

“I promise I’ll ask you first before I kiss you next time.”

“You want to have next time?!” Nico turned his head toward Jason with a ‘you are unbelievable’ expression that was written all over his face and Jason’s grin just got wider.

“I do. Can I kiss you right now?”

“Wa–… uhmm…”

…

This was the second time in one day Nico’s lips got attacked and he can’t react quick enough to it.

But it wasn’t like he hated these kisses anyway.

…

“Your lips are so soft.” That was the first comment from Jason when he finally released the smaller boy. Both of Nico’s cheeks were flushed pink now and his lips got a rosy shade of red. His eyes were slightly unfocused at the first moment before he looked away, seemed embarrassed.

 _‘He looks even cuter with this face. Should I kiss him again?’_ The blond thought.

He tried to not attack the black-haired boy’s lips again and withdrew his arms from the other’s waist. He took a small card visit from his pocket and gave it to Nico with a wink. “This is my address and phone numbers.”

“Uhm.” Nico just nodded.

“Call me when you’re home, alright?”

“Uhm.”

“We had a great day. I want to meet you again.”

“Uhm.” Nico still didn’t react much, and Jason can’t stop himself from lowering his head down and kissed the other’s forehead.

“See you soon.”

He walked away in satisfy, didn’t care about some whispers from a small audience that just gathered around them _“Are they a couple or just some secret lovers?”_ or even worse _“He looks so handsome, it’s a pity that he’s just a call boy.”_

…

Nico looked down at the small piece of paper inside his palm than looked up at the crowded street, and finally he let out a heavy sigh. Museum, restaurant, free meal, two kisses that he didn’t expect before. It’s time to call it a day.

…


End file.
